Video 7:02
Millers' worry

Sawmillers are confused about what last week's forest deal means for the future of their resource.

Transcript

AIRLIE WARD, PRESENTER: Sawmillers across the state are still reeling from last week's high profile forests deal.

With the statement of principles pledging to eventually end all large scale native forest logging, it brings their long term viability into question.

For one family-run country mill, there's disbelief and uncertainty.

Demand for their products might be growing every day but they put expansion plans on hold, unsure about their native timber supply.

Fiona Breen visited the Watsons at the Huon Valley timber sawmill this week. The family has been sawmilling for 120 years.

Now they're scrambling to make sense of a deal their own industry signed-off on.

FIONA BREEN, REPORTER: As they say in the timber industry, the Watsons of Huon have sawdust in their blood. They have been involved in the timber industry since the 1890s.

The current generation, Rick Watson and his three sons, operate the Huon Valley timber mill, one of the State's many family run sawmills.

7,500 cubic metres of native regrowth logs are sawn in the mill each year.

ANTHONY WATSON, SAWMILLER: I would think we're probably one of the more efficient saw mills around, particularly in Tasmania. We utilise everything we can. We cut right down to 25mm for 25mm garden stakes.

We cut garden sleepers; we cut quite a few products, low grade products for packaging.

Some stuff gets shipped, we try to recover everything that can be recovered.

FIONA BREEN: The mill's biggest client is a timber mouldings company which supplies hardware stores across the country with products like architraves, door moulds, skirting boards and dowel.

90 per cent of these high quality mouldings are native Tasmanian hardwood, sawn by the Watsons of Glen Huon.

ANTHONY WATSON: Our Tasmanian oak sawn timber demand is increasing.

Our local customers here in Tasmania, national customers throughout Australia and even overseas, they're demanding, they want more of it, they like it. It's friendly and usable to what they do and they want more of it.

FIONA BREEN: Demand is so strong the family's working at maximum capacity. The production line is humming and everyone is busy.

ANTHONY WATSON: At the moment, we're put in a position where we need to make a decision to either get bigger or think about getting out.

The industry is such that to stay as we are we can't meet our customers' needs.

FIONA BREEN: Last week's historic forest deal has put a question mark over the family's million dollar expansion plans.

They're bewildered by what forest industry representatives appear to have agreed to.

The signatures on the statement of principles sign away not only access to old growth but it also commits to getting out of all public native forests, where the Watsons get all their timber.

RICK WATSON, SAWMILLER: If they lock up some of the areas that they are talking about wanting to lock up, it's where some of our best saw logs come from like Bruny Island, the Weld Valley and the Picton Valley.

FIONA BREEN: The ink is barely dry on the deal but the Watsons say it's already affecting contractors. Forestry Tasmania has asked five of them to move out of their coupes and onto others within three weeks.

In a letter, the Government business commits to asking the State Government for $5,000 for each contractor - the estimated costs of the move.

The Watsons are confused about what the changes will mean for them.

FIONA BREEN: So the sawmillers' association were involved in these round table talks. Did you feel represented?

RICK WATSON: No because we didn't even know anything about it, we weren't told.

We had no inclination of what was going on in those meetings until just in the last few days. So we haven't really had a chance to get our heads around what's happened in those meetings. It was all very secretive and hush, hush.

FIONA BREEN: It's a pledge to eventually end all large scale native forest logging that really worries the Watsons.

RICK WATSON: We're busy, we're always busy. We have got plenty of work on and our markets are expanding.

So if our resources are left alone and we're able to keep going as we have been going, then it's a very bright future and for my children and my grandchildren. So we just need to be left alone.

FIONA BREEN: The family are not reassured by the large tracts of eucalyptus nitens trees that make up the majority of the state's plantations. They say they're no good for high value sawn products.

RICK WATSON: It's too soft, it's too pliable, it's got too many knots in it. The builders who tried the eco-ash that was being produced up the Tamar, hardly any of the builders want to use it now because it's just not a good timber to use.

With the guarantees that you've got, to put out the timber that you produce, you need to be producing it out of a good quality log, not out of an inferior log.

FIONA BREEN: The family's nervous about just where they will get their wood from. The Forest Industries Association has said publicly it could take up to 30 years to establish a whole new plantation estate but the Watsons say it would take a lot longer.

RICK WATSON: We cut trees anywhere from 50 years old to 120 years old, which is classified as regrowth. So we need at least 50 years to get the smaller end of our saw log. If we want larger saw logs then we need 60 to 100 years to grow it.

FIONA BREEN: The Watsons are so concerned, they're prepared to get political.

ANTHONY WATSON: Personally I would like to be able to do that, yes, and make sure that our voice is heard.

Something that I think is important for us as a business and particularly as a family to be involved in a bit more.

FIONA BREEN: Regardless of how long it will take, for the Watsons the future looks uncertain.

ANTHONY WATSON: We will be pushing ahead with our business plans. We'll certainly be continuing with our plans to expand right up to the point where it starts costing money.

So we will keep planning. We are not willing to money until we know that we have long term security but we will keep on making our plans and moving forward.